Cory Booker delivers animated speech for pro-LGBT Equality Act, claiming Trump is targeting transgender people

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Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., accused President Donald Trump's administration of targeting the transgender community on Tuesday, urging Congress to pass the Democrat-backed Equality Act.

Booker made the emotional speech during an appearance on Capitol Hill alongside prominent Democrats from both the House and Senate. His speech, which lasted several minutes, borrowed heavily from the language of Martin Luther King, Jr.

"The Equality Act is on the right side of history, and right now we stand in the cold shadow of injustice. And so here we are again, introducing this bill. But it is not a normal time that we introduce this bill. We introduced it in the backdrop of a president that in his very campaign, singled out an opportunistic bigotry. The trans community. We stand here in the backdrop of a time that LGBTQ Americans are being targeted and singled out for more injustice," Booker said.

"I want you to know, we reintroduce this bill with attitude. We reintroduce this bill with swagger. We entered the bill Tuesday's bill with confidence, because there are a lot of people who are hearing our voice right now that don't understand that they are implicated. There's no bystanders in history. When injustice is in our midst, and you say nothing and you do nothing, you are part of the perpetuation of that injustice," he added.

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"I remind those Americans, that even the truth, when crushed to the ground, after lie, after lie, after lie, that the truth will still rise again, that this is still one nation under God. That we still swear an oath of liberty and justice for all, and that we will not stop until freedom rings from every coast in this country. That freedom rings for every person and every soul. That freedom rings for every American, no matter who you are. Race, color or creed, LGBTQ, American or straight ally," he continued. "That we declare that the arc of the moral universe is long, but it doesn't bend automatically."

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"We declare today and every day until justice is established in this land, until the Equality Act passes, we declare that we, the people, will grab hold of that arc and pull and bend it until we live up to our promise in a country and truly are free at last, free at last," he finished.

The Equality Act would prohibit discrimination based on "sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity."

Booker was joined by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., as well as former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., among other lawmakers.

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The legislative push comes as Trump's administration has pushed to end unpopular diversity, equity and inclusion programs throughout the federal government.

The president’s efforts to end DEI across the federal government also prompted the cancellation of such programs across the private sector. 

Meta, in January, canceled its DEI programs, as did McDonald's. And after the 2024 election, Walmart, Ford Motor Co., John Deere, Lowe's and Toyota also ended DEI programs.

As recently as April, according to Forbes, IBM, Gannett, and Constellation Brands Inc., made changes to DEI policies. Earlier in 2025, UnitedHealth Group, MLB, Victoria’s Secret, Warner Bros. Discovery, Goldman Sachs, Paramount, Bank of America, BlackRock, Citigroup, Pepsi, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, Coca-Cola, Deloitte, PBS, Google, Disney, GE, PayPal, Chipotle and more scaled back or canceled their DEI programs.

Meanwhile, in March, the National Institutes of Health rescinded the agency’s "Scientific Integrity Policy" implemented during the last few weeks of President Biden’s term, to peel back any DEI requirements. 

Fox News' Brooke Singman contributed to this report.

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